Adoption Rights for LGBT in United States

When you hear the word adoption what comes to your mind? Well when I hear or think about the word adoption, I see it as a beautiful transitioning happening in a child and family life. When an individual and couple decide to adopt a child there’re numerous reasons why, but everyone has the same goal to give a child a safe and loving home with a family. The adoption rights for a heterosexual and homosexual individual or couple are different.

They will not experience the same adoption process. The LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender) community must go through different loop holes in order to adopt a child. Most agencies do not accept LGBT individual or couples due to their morals and religious beliefs. All states have certain laws for LGBT adoption rights. What are the adoptions rights for LGBT?

LGBT Adoption Rights

The nature of adoption rights for LGBT are looked at from a negative and positive angle. Traditionally a household is a mother and father raising their children together, rather than the same sex raising children together. Due to morals and religious beliefs a homosexual individual or couple should raise a child together. Religious beliefs play a big role in LGBT rights to adopt from certain agencies. The adoption rights for LGBT are looked at from a negative angle making the process hard to adopt, because most states are not prochoice on placing a child in a homosexual house hold. All 50 states allow LGBT individuals to adopt as a single parent. Only 19 states allow the LGBT community to adopt a child individually, jointly, or second/step-parent. Montana and Pennsylvania allow LGBT to have a second/step-parent adoption, while Maine and Arkansas allow joint adoption. Florida was the only state for decades who didn’t allow LGBT adoption rights. Some states have banned gay marriage but has given them the full rights to adopt a child together. There are 37 states that have not banned same sex marriage while the other 13 states are still against it. The goal is for all LGBT to be given the same rights as heterosexual couples when adopting in all states. The likelihood of different actions happening with LGBT adoption rights is likely because not all states have grant them the rights to make their own decisions. The chances of some states changing their laws will take time.

The risk factor of an LGBT couple raising a child is them influencing the child to like the same sex. Yet there are numerous risk factors on why a child shouldn’t be raised by LGBT couples, some are the child will get picked on, have development delays, or become a trouble child. The LGBT community consist of male and females that comes from all racial background: African Americans, Asian, Hispanic/ Latino, and Whites. A survey was done on Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics from ages 18 and up in favor of same sex adoptions. According to Pew Research Center 2012, “There is an 11 percent difference between men and women, with women reporting a majority of 57 percent in favor. Regarding race and ethnicity, the difference was also 11 percent, with white respondents providing the highest support (54 percent) for same-gender adoption, and black respondents reporting the lowest support at 43 percent. Concerning family income, of those respondents with the lowest income (below $30,000), approximately four in 10 favored adoption, compared with those with the highest income ($75,000+), of whom six in 10 (64 percent) were in favor.” Most LGBT who are raising children are usually older, well educated, and has more economic recourse than heterosexual couple who have adopted.

Commonalities and Differences

When an LGBT individual or couple wants to adopt a child, they should be given the same rights as a heterosexual individual or couple. An LGBT person shouldn’t have to hind or feel judge because their love life is not normal to other beliefs. The purpose of filling out the adoption forms is to provide a better life for a child not to judge the relationship status of a stable couple. All candidates must do a background check for each agency before placing a child in their home. Heterosexual individual or couple are most likely to get the child of their choice than a homosexual individual or couple who must wait until a child comes along that no one really wants. Children with disabilities or trouble issues that the agencies have a hard time placing will be given to a homosexual individual or couple because the heterosexual doesn’t want them.

The commonly thing said about same sex raising children is that the child will have issues growing up, but study has shown that children raised in a same sex household have more qualities than heterosexual raised children. Homosexual raised children are more open to change, explore different opportunity, high self-esteem, and many more qualities. Being raised in a homosexual household the children feel more comfortable expressing their self. Being raised in either household issues will occur neither house hold will be perfect. Heterosexual individual or couples will never experience the same adoption process as a LGBT because they are considered more qualified to raise a child. The only difference in the two household are the parental statues but should that be an issue if the child well being is not in danger.

Impact

The impact of a homosexual or heterosexual household is the same no matter what household a child was raised in will determined if you have issues growing up. Some children who was raised by heterosexual parents are criminals and have life issues. Dysfunctions can be caused in any household just like no parent can prevent their child sexuality. The bi-psycho-social approach deals with the social, psychological and biology of a child. The social point of view is that a child will be picked on by the peers, family issues will occur, and family relationships. The psychology point of view is coping skills, social skills, self-esteem, and mental health. The biology point of view physical health, genetic vulnerabilities, and drug effect. Some other bi-psycho-social topics are IQ, temperament, school, disabilities, and trauma. The same examples given on the bi-psycho-social approach chart can happen in a heterosexual household as well. There are numerous children who has grown up to be homosexual raised by heterosexual parents. A child can experience any issues on a social, psychology, and biology level in any house hold. The world is changing every day the chances of having the same sex parents is likely to happen its not abnormal.

Social Work Practice

According to Maxwell (2008), “ In the area of advocacy and social policy implementation, social workers who serve the LGBT community are likely to confront one of three types of legal same-gender adoption environments: Group 1 includes those states that have legalized adoption for gay and lesbian individuals only— excluding adoption by couples—yet have not legalized same-gender marriage. In this legal environment, social workers have the greatest challenge before them, because these states do not allow couples to adopt. As such, these states appear to not recognize or accept any type of same-gender union. By denying couples the right to adopt, these states are, intentionally or unintentionally, sending a message that they do not welcome LGBT couples. Thus, social workers may wish to push legislatively for full same-gender rights, including both marriage and adoption.

Group 2 includes the states that allow only two forms of adoption: individual and either joint or second-parent/stepparent. In this environment, social workers may wish to determine the philosophical and legal underpinnings of what appears to be an inconsistent policy. Group 3 includes the 19 states, and the District of Columbia, that have legalized all three forms of same-gender adoption, yet several of these states have not legalized same-gender marriage. In terms of advocacy, social workers may wish to address why these states have legalized adoption without restriction, and offer their insight to social workers representing clients in the states in groups 1 and 2.” (Maxwell, 2008, p. 326-327) The social worker is being the advocated by standing up for the client’s rights that were wrongly banned from them because the states moral and beliefs doesn’t match theirs. The state doesn’t have the right to tell someone how to love another person. The social worker job is to understand the situation and LGBT community also even if their beliefs are not the same, they cannot be biased in any way. The LGBT community have different groups and organization that help each other. They have event by bring the children and family together to feel welcome and learning thing if they need assisting. The LGBT community helps and stay together more than the heterosexual community the saying it take a village to raise a child the LGBT beliefs it takes a village that’s why they are willing to help one another by providing different resources and having organizations.

Reference Page

1. Connolly, C. (1998). The description of gay and lesbian families in second-parent adoption cases. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 16(2), 225–236. https://ecnhts-proxy.jsums.edu:3569/10.1002/(SICI)1099-0798(199821)16:23.0.CO;2-Z
2. Maxwell, L. (2008). Building Rainbow Families. Library Journal, 133(6), 54–57. Retrieved from http://ecnhts-proxy.jsums.edu:2069/login.aspx?direct=true&db=trh&AN=31568628&site=ehost-live
3. Montero, D. M. (2014). America’s Progress in Achieving the Legalization of Same-Gender Adoption: Analysis of Public Opinion, 1994 to 2012. Social Work, 59(4), 321–328. https://ecnhts-proxy.jsums.edu:3569/10.1093/sw/swu038
4. Padgett, T. (2007). Gay Family Values. Time, 170(3), 51. Retrieved from http://ecnhts-proxy.jsums.edu:2069/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tth&AN=25650495&site=ehost-live
5. Pew Research Center. (2012a). Obama endorsement has limited impact: Two-thirds of democrats now support gay marriage. Retrieved from http://www.pewforum.org/files/ 2012/07/Democrats-Gay-Marriage-Support-full.pdf

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